Walker mechanism for invalids



Aug. 24, 1943. J. A. RUPPRECHT 2,327,671

WALKER MECHANISM FOR INVALIDS Fil ad Sepi. 10, 1941 2 Sheets$heet l 24'YWL ATTORN EYS Aug. 24, 1943. J. A. RUPPRECHT WALKER MECHANISM FOR'INVALIDS Filed Sept. 10, 1941 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 ATTORNEYS JOSEPH A.RuPPREcHr INVENTOR Patented Aug. 24, 1943 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE2,327,671 WALKER MECHANISM FOR INVALlDS Joseph A. Rupprecht, Seattle,Wash. Application September 10, 1941,SerialNo.4 10,27 3 i 11 Claims.(01,. 272-40) This invention relates to improvements in a walkermechanism for invalids and more particularly-to an apparatus orappliancewhich may be used by physicians to control the weight pressureallowed on the legs of invalids in cases of leg fractures, breaks,sprains, cut tendons, and so forth, during the healing stages and toassist the invalid in regainingfull use of his physical processes. Thisinvention is also useful in the treatment of infantile paralysis andother .111- nesses involving loss orimpairment of muscular coordination,and weaknesses, as it allows the attending physicians to prescribe andcontrol body pressure on legs, while allowing patients full freedom forneeded exercise.

The device entirely eliminates any danger of re-injury or added injurywhich is possible dur ing the use of crutches. My device, through'theprinciples involved, acts as an aid inmaking walking motions and bysystematic weight increases on the legs, as prescribed by the'physician,allows a gradual strengthening of the muscles and re-coordination of thenerves to the end that full articulation may be hastened and made easy;

In the rehabilitation of invalids who are suffering from the disabilityof using the lower limbs, it is an important consideration that theperson gradually apply the body weight to the healing legs or limbs, sothat the weak member,

muscles, orthe like may take up the strainof carrying the body in agradual manner and in a manner that may be periodically increased orvaried. When the undertaking is left to the judgment of the invalid,often he will takeu'pon himself too strenuous a burden for the conditionthat he is trying to cure and great harm will be done.

It is an important object of my invention to provide a walker mechanismfor invalids, which mechanism, in addition to supporting the invalid,may also be periodically adjusted tovary the load the invalid may placeupon the lower extremities and to carefully gauge that load, previous toallowing its support by the invalid.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a walker forinvalids in which device the entire body weight of the invalid iscarried in suspending means and can be applied to the extremities of theinvalid only when'desired by him. 1 r I A further objectof the inventionrelates to the provision of gauge scales in a walker by which the loadthat theinvalids legs are tocarry may be carefullygauged before the inbesuspended. i

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be more apparentduring the course of the following description.

In the drawings and in the accompanying specification I have shown anddescribed a preferred form of my invention, but it is specificallypointed out that changes and alterations may be made within the scope ofthe subjoined claims without departing from the principles disclosedherein.

In the draWings--- Figure 1 is a'perspective view of my walker mechanismfor invalids,

Figure 2 is a side elevational view of the cable stopper used in myassembly,

Figure 3 is a vertical cross-sectional view through the cable stopper,taken on line 33 of Figure 2,

Figure 4 is a cross-sectional view taken on line 4-4 of Figure 2,

Figure 5 is an inner liner which may be inserted in the supporting trunkof my device,

Figure 6 is a. fragmentary plan view showing leadersheaves attached tothe horizontal cross.

brace of the walker frame,

Figure '7 is an enlarged sectional View of th yoke member, the ball andsocket arrangement for the telescopic side braces and the locking meansfor the same,

Figure 8 is a cross-sectional view of the supporting strap:and snapwhich is attached between the .suspender spring and the trunks,

Figure 9 is a vertical sectional view of the bevel gear andscrewemployed in my device,

Figure 10 is a view taken on line |o |o of Figure 9,

. Figure 11 is a perspective View of a modified Adapted to be adjustedvertically in the front support bar 26 is a screw which carries a'yoke-supporting fork 42. A support or yoke .44

is secured as by the rivets 46 to the fork 42. A pair of opposed yokesupporting legs 48 and 50 rest in the ball and socket joint shown at 52and rise therefrom. The telescopic legs 54 fit into the tubular legs 48and 50 and have ball and socket or pivotal connections to the yoke at53. These yoke legs have to be adjusted for differences in heights towhich the yoke is adjusted with relation to the front support bar 25. jThe telescopic legs 54 may be locked in any adjusted position in theyoke legs 48 and 56 by the wing nuts 58. I The yoke can be adjusted toany height by means of the two meshed bevel gears shown at 28. Thehousing of the bevel gears is secured to the front support bar 7 26. Aninternally threaded bevel gear 60 engages on the threaded leg 4!] and isin mesh with the bevelgear 62 which is rotatable by the crank M. Whenthe crank Ed is rotated, .which'action revolves gear 62, the

gear 60 will beturned and the threads on its interior will raise orlower the screw 40., The screw all has a keyway 66 cut in its front faceand the key 68 in the leg 26 keeps the yoke 44 from shifting.

A cable stopper it! is attached to the lower front of the brace rod 25above the gauge-scale H and below. the bevel gear assembly 28. Thefunction of this stopper is to assume the. load carried on the scale Hand to allow disconnec tion of cables running to the gauge-scale whereweight adjustment has been made.

When such adjustment is made and the gaugescale is relieved of theload,. subsequent and forceful movements of the patient in thesuspending means will not be translated directly to the relativelysensitive mechanism of the gaugescale. The function of the cable stopperis primarily for such protective reasons, although it also serves torelieve the suspension means of any flexibility that wouldbe'impartedfrom the gauge mechanism as well as to firmly anchor thesuspension means at one-end.

The housing 'a'il of the cable stopper has the two slots 12 in opposedsides. Mounted to float freely in the stopper housing, is the horizontalspreader bar 7 4 which is secured to a guide block 76 within the housing"lb and extends outwardly on each side thereof. The horizontal spreaderbar has the cable clamps '58 at its ends which are formed by bifurcatingthe spreader ends attt. These are closed snugly about the. cable bythewing-nuts M- on bolts 82.

A set screw 84 which is threaded'into the top of the housing at 85 isused as a stop tofix the guide block 16 in any desired position.

The gauge spring .scale- H is secured to the front cross tie bar 20' atflil; I This gauge scale is used, first, for determining the weight ofthe patient and second for determining the weight pressure allowable onthe legs as prescribed by the circumstances of the invalids condition.The scale ll is spring operated and has a pointer which indicates on theindicia 92 the number of pounds pressure applied to the draft link 94that is coupled to the indicator hand 90 by spring mechanism (notshown). The link 94 has the hook 96 at its outward end.

Two body supporting cables 98 and H10 are secured-to a ring I02 whichring is engaged over a book 96. The cables are then led upwardly intothe ends of the spreader bar at I 04 and H16 where they may be clamped.They are then passed over the leader sheaves I08 and I H], which sheavesare secured to the horizontal cross bar 34. Eventually'the cables areled over the upper leader sheaves H2 and H4, which sheaves have clipsthat are secured by the rivets 46 to the yoke 44 and fork 42.

The suspender springs H6 are attached to the ends of the cables 98 andI00, and support the body suspension assembly. Adjustableweb bing orstraps H8 andsnaps attach the springs ;to the trunks 122. These trunkshave sides and back adjustable to fit the wearer. This garmentisadjusted by varying the laces H4 in the slits in the sides and back. Aninner liner lziiis placed within thetrunks and is used fo sanitation.

,The suspender straps are adjustable by means of the buckle and holeassembly shown at I28. The snap fasteners I20 are snapped into loops I33whichmay be built into the trunks.

'In the modified showing of Figures 11 and 12 the suspender springs-arecoupled directly to the indicating-gauge scalesv l 32. The draftlinks134 of these scales can be locked in position by the.

In this showing the adjustments set screw I36. for'length are made bythe adjustable suspender straps I40.

M ethod of operation I The suspender springs H6 are two fold in Iaction-first as the patient is lowered after the total weight has beendetermined, the springs will recoil in relation to the Weight allowedupon the patients legs, and thus will not disturb the adjustment made onthe Suspender strapsin relation to the armpit rest or yoke 44 with thetrunks. Second, the remaining coil of spring acts as a shock absorberand augments whatever strength the patient may have'in making walkingmotions. I v

The construction over all is intended to give maximum mobility with theleast expended effort. The forward slant of the front bar, by'the actionof the body thrust against it, helps the leg motion of the invalid todrive the apparatus forward. 7 V

The wide breadth of the bottom frame or chas-' sis is intended toprovide greater balance for safety. The bracing is so placed as to givethe greatest amount of strength with a minimum of braces for lightnessof construction.

In operation, after adjusting the suspender straps in relation to thearmpit rest or yoke 44 to .fit the patient-the patient is then placed inthe'apparatus with his feet suspended free of the floor, at which timehis total weight is regisf tered on the gauge; scale. Then by graduallylowering by means of the gearing and front screw,

the exact pressure on legs may be determined.

For instance, if the gauge scale shows that-the patient weighs1150pounds and'the allowable Weight on the legs-;is. 20- pounds, bygradually,

lowering until the gauge shows 130 pounds, it is accurately determinedthat the patient is sustaining pounds of total weight. The set screw ofthe cable stop is then screwed down firmly on the horizontal bar and thecables are free of tension to be released from the gauge scale.

When the cable is stopped off the suspension means for the hip-receivingportion will be anchored at one end and neither receive resilience fromthe gauge-scale nor transmit, during subsequent use, force that might bedestructive to the elements of the gauge-scale.

I claim:

1. In an exerciser of the type employing a wheel carriage and asuperstructure thereon adapted to partially support the human body bythe armpits and from which body. receiving means may be suspended, agauge scale on said frame, suspension means associated with said scalefor suspending a weight from said superstructure, and a body receivingelement depending from said cable means whereby a body in said elementwill have its weight translated to said gauge scale, and clamp means toengage said suspension means to secure said body receiving element inadjusted position without disturbing the point of suspension of saidelement.

2. In an exerciser of the type employing a wheel carriage and asuperstructure thereon from which body receiving meansmay be sus.pended, a gauge scale on said frame, suspension means associated withsaid scale for suspending a weight from said superstructure, a bodyreceiving element depending from said suspension means whereby a body insaid element will have its weight translated to said gauge scale, andmeans for relieving said scale of a weight applied thereto withoutdisturbing the point cfsuspension of said element.

3. In an exerciser of the type employing a wheel carriage frame and a,superstructure thereon from which person receiving means may besuspended, a yoke fixed to said superstructure to receive and supportthe shoulder portion of a person, a gauge scale on said frame,suspension means associated with said scale for suspending a weight fromsaid superstructure, and a person receiving element depending from saidsuspension means whereby a person in said element will have its weighttranslated to said gauge scale.

4. An invalid walker comprising a wheeled carriage frame, a gauge scaleon the frame and having means for translating a weight thereto, meansfor receiving andsupporting the body of an invalid, suspension meansbetween said body receiving means and said weight translating means onsaid gauge scale whereby the weight of a body is suspended in saidreceiving means and is indicated on the dial of said gauge, and meansfor locking said suspension means to relieve said scale of said weighton occasion while maintaining the body in suspended position.

5. An invalid walker comprising a wheeled carriage frame, a gauge scaleon the frame and having means for translating a weight thereto, meansfor receiving and supporting the body of an invalid, suspension meansbetween said body receiving means and said weight translating means onsaid gauge scale whereby the weight of the body is suspended in saidreceiving means and indicated on the dial of said gauge means, and meansfor clamping said suspension means in adjusted position to relieve saidscale of the body weight on occasion.

-6. An invalid walker comprising a wheeled carriage frame, a gauge scaleon the frame and having means for translating 2. weight thereto, meansfor receiving and supporting the body of an invalid, a cable betweensaid body receiving means and said weight translating means on saidgauge scale whereby the weight of a body is suspended in said receivingmeans and is indicated on the dial of said gauge means, and a clamp forsecuring said cable to relieve said scale of the body weight onoccasion.

7 An invalid walker comprising a wheeled carriage frame, a gauge scaleon the frame and having means for translating a weight thereto, meansfor receiving and supporting the body of an invalid, a pair of cablesbetween said body receiving means and said weight translating means onsaid scale whereby the weight of a body is suspended in said receivingmeans and is indicated on the dial of said gauge means, and means forclamping said cable in adjusted position to relieve said scale of saidweight on occasion, said means comprising a housing having a verticallymovable element therein and clamp arms extending outwardly from saidelement, each arm adapted to engage and clamp one said cable, and meansfor maintaining said movable element in adjusted position.

8. An invalid walker comprising a wheeled carriage frame, a gauge scaleon the frame and including means for translating a weight thereto, meansfor receiving and supporting the person of an invalid, and suspensionmeans between said person receiving means and said weight translatingmeans on said gauge scale whereby the weight of a person in saidreceiving means is indicated on the dial of said gauge means.

9. An exercising mechanism comprising a supporting frame adapted topartially support the human body by the armpits, a gauge scale on saidframe, suspension means depending from said gauge scale for translatinga weight imposed upon the suspension means to said scale, hip supportingmeans on said suspension means, and means for relieving said scale ofsaid weight on occasion.

10; In an invalid walker of the type employing a carriage frame having asuperstructure thereon adapted to partially support the human bodyby-thearmpits and from which body supporting means may be suspended, a gaugescale on said frame having means for translating a weight thereto, acable associated with said weight translating means and saidsuperstructure for suspending a weight, springmeans on said cable and abody receiving element depending from said spring means whereby aninvalid in said element will have his weight resiliently translated tosaid gauge scale.

11. In an invalid walker of the type employinga carriage frame having asuperstructure thereon adapted to partially support the human. bodyby'the armpits and from which body supporting means may be suspended, agauge scale on said frame having means for translating a weight thereto,a cable associated with said weight translating means and saidsuperstructure for suspending a weight, a body receiving elementdepending from said cable whereby an invalid in said element will havehis weight translated to said gauge scale, and means for clamping saidcable in adjusted position on occasion.

JOSEPH A. RUPPRECHT.

